This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Verkooyen, R. P.
Right arrow Articles by Verbrugh, H. A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Verkooyen, R. P.
Right arrow Articles by Verbrugh, H. A.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, August 1998, p. 2301-2307, Vol. 36, No. 8
0095-1137/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of PCR, Culture, and Serology for Diagnosis of Chlamydia pneumoniae Respiratory Infections

R. P. Verkooyen,1,* D. Willemse,1 S. C. A. M. Hiep-van Casteren,2 S. A. Mousavi Joulandan,3 R. J. Snijder,2 J. M. M. van den Bosch,2 H. P. T. van Helden,4 M. F. Peeters,5 and H. A. Verbrugh1

Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam,1 Departments of Pulmonary Diseases2 and Medical Microbiology and Immunology,4 St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein,2 Department of Medical Microbiology, Diakonessen Hospital, Utrecht,3 and Department of Medical Microbiology, St. Elisabeth Hospital, Tilburg,5 The Netherlands

Received 4 December 1997/Returned for modification 27 January 1998/Accepted 30 April 1998

We prospectively studied 156 patients with a diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia requiring admission. Several respiratory specimens were obtained for the detection of Chlamydia pneumoniae by cell culture and PCR. Three serum samples were obtained from each patient. Serological diagnosis of a C. pneumoniae infection was determined by the microimmunofluorescence (MIF) test, the complement fixation (CF) test, and recombinant lipopolysaccharide (LPS) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA; referred to as the rDNA LPS ELISA). Twenty-three patients (15%) had serological results compatible with acute C. pneumoniae infection; nine (39%) of these subjects were C. pneumoniae PCR positive. Twenty-two patients (14%) had positive PCR results without serological evidence of an acute C. pneumoniae infection. An attempt was made to calculate the sensitivities and specificities of the MIF test, rDNA LPS ELISA, and PCR for the diagnosis of chlamydial community-acquired pneumonia. Several "gold standards" were defined. Generally, the sensitivities of the rDNA LPS ELISA and MIF were comparable, while the sensitivity of the CF test was shown to be very low. Independent of the gold standard used, the best PCR results were obtained with nasopharyngeal specimens. However, the predictive value of a positive C. pneumoniae PCR result for patients with community-acquired pneumonia remains unknown and may be low. Although a widely accepted gold standard is still lacking, the rDNA LPS ELISA may currently be the preferred tool for diagnosing acute respiratory Chlamydia infections in routine clinical practice. However, the MIF test remains the method of choice for determining the prevalence of C. pneumoniae infections in a given community.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, Room Ee1720, P.O. box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Phone: 31 10 463 3510. Fax: 31 10 463 4730. E-mail: Verkooyen{at}kmic.fgg.eur.nl.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, August 1998, p. 2301-2307, Vol. 36, No. 8
0095-1137/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Loens, K., Van Heirstraeten, L., Malhotra-Kumar, S., Goossens, H., Ieven, M. (2009). Optimal Sampling Sites and Methods for Detection of Pathogens Possibly Causing Community-Acquired Lower Respiratory Tract Infections. J. Clin. Microbiol. 47: 21-31 [Full Text]  
  • Kim, D. K., Kim, H. J., Han, S. H., Lee, J. E., Moon, S. J., Kim, B. S., Kang, S.-W., Choi, K. H., Lee, H. Y., Han, D.-S. (2008). Chlamydia pneumoniae accompanied by inflammation is associated with the progression of atherosclerosis in CAPD patients: a prospective study for 3 years. Nephrol Dial Transplant 23: 1011-1018 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Loens, K., Beck, T., Ursi, D., Overdijk, M., Sillekens, P., Goossens, H., Ieven, M. (2008). Development of Real-Time Multiplex Nucleic Acid Sequence-Based Amplification for Detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Chlamydophila pneumoniae, and Legionella spp. in Respiratory Specimens. J. Clin. Microbiol. 46: 185-191 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Robman, L., Mahdi, O. S., Wang, J. J., Burlutsky, G., Mitchell, P., Byrne, G., Guymer, R., Taylor, H. (2007). Exposure to Chlamydia pneumoniae Infection and Age-Related Macular Degeneration: The Blue Mountains Eye Study. IOVS 48: 4007-4011 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Heddema, E. R., van Hannen, E. J., Duim, B., de Jongh, B. M., Kaan, J. A., van Kessel, R., Lumeij, J. T., Visser, C. E., Vandenbroucke-Grauls, C. M. J. E. (2006). An outbreak of psittacosis due to Chlamydophila psittaci genotype A in a veterinary teaching hospital.. J Med Microbiol 55: 1571-1575 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Robman, L., Mahdi, O., McCarty, C., Dimitrov, P., Tikellis, G., McNeil, J., Byrne, G., Taylor, H., Guymer, R. (2005). Exposure to Chlamydia pneumoniae Infection and Progression of Age-related Macular Degeneration. Am J Epidemiol 161: 1013-1019 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Tenenbaum, T., Heusch, A., Henrich, B., MacKenzie, C. R., Schmidt, K. G., Schroten, H. (2005). Acute Hemorrhagic Pericarditis in a Child with Pneumonia Due to Chlamydophila pneumoniae. J. Clin. Microbiol. 43: 520-522 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Pelton, S. I., Hammerschlag, M. R. (2005). Overcoming Current Obstacles in the Management of Bacterial Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Ambulatory Children. CLIN PEDIATR 44: 1-17  
  • Hermann, C., Gueinzius, K., Oehme, A., von Aulock, S., Straube, E., Hartung, T. (2004). Comparison of Quantitative and Semiquantitative Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays for Immunoglobulin G against Chlamydophila pneumoniae to a Microimmunofluorescence Test for Use with Patients with Respiratory Tract Infections. J. Clin. Microbiol. 42: 2476-2479 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Portig, I., Goodall, J. C., Bailey, R. L., Gaston, J. S. H. (2003). Characterization of the Humoral Immune Response to Chlamydia Outer Membrane Protein 2 in Chlamydial Infection. CVI 10: 103-107 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hao, Q, Miyashita, N, Matsui, M, Wang, H-Y, Matsushima, T, Saida, T (2002). Chlamydia pneumoniae infection associated with enhanced MRI spinal lesions in multiple sclerosis. Mult Scler 8: 436-440 [Abstract]  
  • Stone, A. F.M., Mendall, M. A., Kaski, J.-C., Edger, T. M., Risley, P., Poloniecki, J., Camm, A. J., Northfield, T. C. (2002). Effect of Treatment for Chlamydia pneumoniae and Helicobacter pylori on Markers of Inflammation and Cardiac Events in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndromes: South Thames Trial of Antibiotics in Myocardial Infarction and Unstable Angina (STAMINA). Circulation 106: 1219-1223 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hermann, C., Graf, K., Groh, A., Straube, E., Hartung, T. (2002). Comparison of Eleven Commercial Tests for Chlamydia pneumoniae-Specific Immunoglobulin G in Asymptomatic Healthy Individuals. J. Clin. Microbiol. 40: 1603-1609 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Marston, E. L., James, A. V., Parker, J. T., Hart, J. C., Brown, T. M., Messmer, T. O., Jue, D. L., Black, C. M., Carlone, G. M., Ades, E. W., Sampson, J. (2002). Newly Characterized Species-Specific Immunogenic Chlamydophila pneumoniae Peptide Reactive with Murine Monoclonal and Human Serum Antibodies. CVI 9: 446-452 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hartley, J. C., Kaye, S., Stevenson, S., Bennett, J., Ridgway, G. (2001). PCR Detection and Molecular Identification of Chlamydiaceae Species. J. Clin. Microbiol. 39: 3072-3079 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Dorigo-Zetsma, J. W., Verkooyen, R. P., van Helden, H. P., van der Nat, H., van den Bosch, J. M. (2001). Molecular Detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae in Adults with Community-Acquired Pneumonia Requiring Hospitalization. J. Clin. Microbiol. 39: 1184-1186 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Avila, P., Jay, S. J., Dean, D., Neumayr, L. D., Vichinsky, E. P. (2000). Acute Chest Syndrome in Sickle Cell Disease. NEJM 343: 1336-1337 [Full Text]  
  • Persson, K., Boman, J. (2000). Comparison of Five Serologic Tests for Diagnosis of Acute Infections by Chlamydia pneumoniae. CVI 7: 739-744 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Boman, J., Gaydos, C. A., Quinn, T. C. (1999). Molecular Diagnosis of Chlamydia pneumoniae Infection. J. Clin. Microbiol. 37: 3791-3799 [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»